


Count Your Chickens (Before They Hatch)

by hereforthefic_onlythefic



Series: Sokka, Zuko, & the Pet Chicken AU [2]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, An ode to helpful chicken websites and also Tractor Supply Co, Chickens, Devoted Chicken Owner Zuko, Duckie is an angry chicken, Established Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Idiots in Love, Jet is a menace (affectionate), M/M, Once again bordering on crack, Once again very background Jetru for spice, Sokka is also a devoted chicken owner now, They both have anxiety and it shows, Veterinarian Sokka, and farm supply stores of all variety
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-15 14:15:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,612
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29315439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hereforthefic_onlythefic/pseuds/hereforthefic_onlythefic
Summary: “But I should know this! What kind of a chicken owner am I? What kind of vet am I? Jet would know this! Jet probably does know this! How have I gone 18 months without learning about this kind of thing?!” Sokka’s working up a good head of steam now.“You’re a vet, not omnipotent! You think we’re the first chicken owners to not know everything? Clearly the good people on the,” Zuko pauses to glance back at the screen, “backyardchickens dot com forums would beg to differ! There’s 400,000 members on this fucking website!”--Duckie's doing another perfectly normal chicken behavior.Sokka and Zuko are not prepared.
Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Series: Sokka, Zuko, & the Pet Chicken AU [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2153322
Comments: 43
Kudos: 131





	Count Your Chickens (Before They Hatch)

**Author's Note:**

> Welp, Duckie is back! 
> 
> Many, many, many thanks to Onmyliteraturebullshit again for the cheerleading, critical eye, and advice on this! This exists in large part because of her encouragement, so I can't thank her enough.
> 
> Rated T for very mild sexual language and, naturally, swearing.

Sokka wakes up slowly, stretching the sleep out of his limbs as his hands quest across the bed. Finding his target, Sokka splays his fingers across Zuko's arm and opens his eyes. 

"Morning, baby," he murmurs, drinking in Zuko's sleep-rumpled hair and open expression. Ever an early riser, Zuko's already wearing his reading glasses, thumbing through a copy of  _ Love Amongst the Dragons.  _

Zuko hums in acknowledgement, not looking up until he reaches a stopping point. 

Sokka learned early on not to interrupt Zuko’s morning ritual. He made that mistake once, on the fifth morning he stayed over, by gently grabbing Zuko’s book to initiate more intensive cuddles, only to have to navigate through a halting conversation about boundaries and Zuko needing his time to mentally prepare for the day. It's a sacrosanct ritual, and Zuko will set it down quickly when Sokka wakes. However, he doesn’t mind if Sokka cuddles closer while he finishes up, which Sokka frequently uses to his advantage.

Sliding closer to trace patterns in the dappled sunlight on Zuko’s skin, Sokka is struck by his overwhelming feelings of love and gratitude for the man next to him.

If someone had told Sokka 18 months ago that he’d meet the love of his life because of a pet chicken, he’d have laughed riotously and told them to get their heads checked. A chicken?  _ Really? _

(Nevermind that Sokka was carrying--and still does, on his bad days, which have been fewer and farther between thanks to therapy and Zuko’s support--a lingering fear that he was inherently unlovable and simply destined to be alone. It was the chicken part that would be unbelievable, naturally.)

Yet here he is, 18 months into the best relationship he’s ever had, feeling like the luckiest man alive. Moving in together 6 months ago wasn’t without its growing pains, but they’re committed to communicating and finding systems that work for both of them, and Sokka adores the life they’re building together.

Sokka wants to wake up like this every day of the rest of his life.

Zuko interrupts Sokka’s reverie by setting the book and his glasses on the nightstand before sinking back down into bed, where Sokka's making grabby hands. Never one to pass up an opportunity, Sokka drapes himself across his boyfriend, intertwining their fingers and nuzzling into Zuko's neck to press kisses over the bruises he left last night. 

"Good morning to you, too," Zuko rumbles, amusement evident in his raspy morning voice. 

"Sleep good?" Sokka asks between kisses, shifting to straddle the other man so he can traverse the expanse of his neck and chest.

He feels rather than hears Zuko's huff of laughter as fingers come up to brush through his hair and scritch at his scalp. Sokka practically purrs.

"Very well, my love. Feeling good this morning, I take it?" 

"Mhm," Sokka hums into Zuko’s collarbones, nosing up the column of his neck to press a kiss to the soft at the corner of his jaw. “Wanna make you feel good, too.”

Zuko’s fingers tense in Sokka’s hair for a moment, clearly considering the offer. Tragically, he huffs out a sigh and extricates his hands to shove gently at Sokka’s shoulders.

“It's a goddamn Wednesday, and Suki  _ will  _ kill you if you're late for the morning team meeting. You've only got 45 minutes."

“That only happened like,  _ once,  _ and it was totally worth it,” Sokka insists, sitting up from his ministrations to make a seductive face at Zuko. It doesn’t land terribly well, based on Zuko’s wry smile as he pushes back the cascade of sleep-rumpled hair that flops over Sokka’s eyes when he sits up. The motion turns into a caress, Zuko’s warm hand resting on Sokka’s cheek. Sokka turns his face to press a kiss to his palm.

“It was definitely worth it, but I don’t think Suki will be as forgiving the second time,” Zuko says. “Besides, you were just complaining last night about being short-staffed today because Jin is out for the day, and Wednesdays are surgery days, so the morning debrief is even more important. I’ve been with you long enough to know these things.” 

_ Damn, he’s right.  _ " _ Ugh,  _ why do I have to be madly in love with such a reasonable and responsible man?" Sokka laments.

"Sounds like a personal problem," Zuko deadpans despite his rising blush, before they both collapse into a heap of laughter. He presses a kiss and a quiet "I love you, too," into Sokka's temple.

"Fine,  _ fine, _ pass up delightful morning sex in favor of  _ adult responsibilities. _ " Sokka flops across the bed, needing Zuko to understand the  _ distress  _ he is experiencing. 

"Nothing delightful is happening before you brush your teeth. I'll go make coffee." He's already up, shrugging on a pair of sweatpants and shuffling out of the bedroom.

"Such indifference to my suffering!" Sokka calls as he clambers out of bed.

The only response he receives is an irritable bawk-bawk from the direction of Duckie's crate and the distant beep of the coffeemaker. 

\--

By the time Sokka's showered and dressed, Zuko's fed Druk, freed Duckie from her crate, and is sitting at the table. Sokka lands a kiss to the crown of his head on his way into the kitchen, pouring himself a cup and pulling the eggs from the fridge. 

"Still no eggs in her crate," Zuko states, concern tingeing his voice.

"Hmm, it's only been a week, Z. She's probably just taking a break," Sokka replies as he scrambles the store bought--because Duckie's a freeloader--eggs for breakfast. "We'll keep an eye out and I'll do some research, see if there's anything I need to look for. She was fine when I examined her two days ago."

"I know, I know. I just worry. You know me."

"Yes, I do, and I love you all the more for it." 

Breakfast done, Sokka sets two plates on the kitchen table. Duckie starts up her anticipatory clucking, flapping her wings as she struts back and forth on the side table that serves double duty as her lookout and breakfast station.

"Don't worry, Princess Duckie, I didn't forget you," Sokka coos, setting a small plate with a mix of chicken food, spinach, and diced strawberry down in front of her. He places a gentle pat on her back.

It's because the variety is good for her, and not at all because she's spoiled and will dive bomb the table to get at their breakfast. Which definitely didn’t start because Sokka read some articles about supplementing chicken diets and started slipping her tidbits on the mornings after he’d stayed over. Sokka started doling out sneaky morning snacks about a month into their relationship, but it took Zuko a few weeks to notice.

(Zuko definitely noticed when Duckie started hopping up on the table. Naturally, the first time she did it was on one of the increasingly few mornings after Sokka  _ hadn’t  _ stayed over. The phone call had been memorable.

“Sokka, why is our chicken hopping up on the table and trying to steal food off my plate in the mornings?”

“Aww, is she really our chicken?” Sokka was legitimately touched by this. He was also trying to evade this line of questioning.

“Sokka.”

“Look, okay, leafy greens are good for her! And fresh fruit! In moderation! I’m being moderate!”

“She has a you-approved diet of  _ very expensive  _ organic chicken food!”

“It’s  _ supplementary!” _

“She is  _ on the table,  _ Sokka!”

Sokka paused. “What if….I got Duckie her own table?”)

"You spoil her, you know," Zuko chuckles before starting in on his own breakfast. 

"Lies," Sokka retorts.

Duckie finishes her breakfast, sends her plate clattering to the floor while inspecting the table for any scraps, and hops off to go inspect Druk’s food bowl.

Sokka ignores Zuko’s pointed look. 

\--

The workday goes by quickly, with all the usual shenanigans inherent to being a small animal veterinarian. They only had to chase one loose cat around the back room, so Sokka considers it a success. 

Sokka's just wrapping up his final paperwork of the day when Zuko calls.

_ So impatient,  _ he laughs to himself.

"Hey, Z. Just couldn't wait to talk to me? I'll be home in 30."

"Hey, uh, actually, there's a problem." Zuko's got his I'm-barely-keeping-it-together voice on, the one he uses when he doesn't want Sokka to think he's freaking out. Sokka tries to quell his own spike of anxiety.

_ Only one of us can freak out at a time,  _ Sokka reminds himself.

"Okay, what's going on? What's wrong? I can be home sooner, I'll leave right now." Sokka scrambles to finish entering this last record. He has a few phone calls to make, but he can hand them off to Suki. 

"It's Duckie. I'm not sure what it is, she doesn't seem hurt, but something's not right," Zuko says, words tumbling over themselves in his rush to explain. "She's hiding in the linen closet, and anytime I go near her she makes this awful screeching noise and puffs her feathers! I'm not sure if she's scared or hurt, but I don't want to move her in case I make it worse! Animals usually hide when they're in pain, right? I don't know how she could have gotten hurt, but--" he's on a roll, will absolutely fret himself into an anxiety attack if Sokka doesn't intervene. 

"Alright, hang on babe. Take a deep breath for me, okay? We'll figure it out. Breathe with me for a second?" Sokka leads Zuko through a short breathing exercise, one of a few tricks he’s discovered to help Zuko reorient himself when he gets nervous. They also help keep  _ Sokka  _ from panicking, because his own anxiety runs wild, too. 

_ It's probably fine, she's probably fine, I probably didn't like, poison her with the strawberries or something, it's fine. Maybe Zuko is exaggerating? _

Zuko takes a couple deep breaths on the line, and Sokka hums. 

"Okay. I'll be home soon. Try not to worry too much. Love you."

"Love you too, Sokka."

\--

Sokka thrusts the list of client calls at Suki on his way past her office. "Gottagocanyoucallthem? Urgent chicken issue! Thanks bye!"

She grabs the list without looking up from her desk, flipping him the bird as he goes. 

\--

Zuko was not exaggerating. Duckie is currently a very angry chicken.

Attempts to get close only cause her to screech louder and fluff up further. Sokka receives a vicious peck to the hand for his efforts to placate her.

“Should I pick her up?” Sokka mutters to himself.

Well, not entirely to himself, apparently. Zuko huffs behind him. “You’re the goddamn veterinarian! Why are you asking  _ me?” _

Sokka shrugs. “Mostly I was just asking the universe. I’m gonna pick her up.” He reaches forward, trying--and failing--to dodge another beak attack. He grabs her before she can do too much damage, gently drawing the bird to his chest while she rapidly increases the volume and duration of her pterodactyl noises.

“Alright, Missy, I’m very sorry but I have to check you out, okay?” Sokka coos, trying to control Duckie’s enraged wing flapping. Her screeching slowly dies down to occasional offended squawking. Nothing obviously amiss jumps out at him on a quick examination. Sokka turns to Zuko, only to find him peering into the closet. “I can’t feel anything wrong with her. Whatcha looking at?”

“I think she’s been laying eggs in here,” Zuko replies. He leans down and reemerges, four eggs clutched in his palm. “Why did she start laying in the linen closet? Why is she sitting on eggs? She’s never done that before.”

Sokka shrugs. He doesn’t have the faintest idea.

"Is it to try and hatch them? Does she want babies? Chickens don't go into heat or anything like that, do they?" Zuko's face screws up into a bemused scrunch as he studies the eggs in his hand.

"No, they don’t go into heat or anything like that,” Sokka replies. "But admittedly, I spent a lot of time researching chicken illnesses after we started dating and….not very much time researching chicken behavior. Actually, no time researching chicken behavior."

Zuko blinks. "Yeah, in retrospect, we should probably have read a chicken book or something. What now?”

"Uh. Google it?"

"Why don't we call J-" 

Sokka cuts him off before Zuko can finish saying the name.

"No."

\--

Google is, thankfully, enlightening. 

Sokka's peering over Zuko's shoulder at the laptop screen, while Zuko holds a still-irate Duckie nestled in his lap. She's stopped pecking and screeching at every movement, opting instead for withering glares and occasional feather fluffing. 

"So. She's broody." Sokka's trying to identify the feeling in his chest as he processes this information. 

"Yup."

"So she wants babies." It's not joy, but it's not sadness or anything like that. 

"Essentially, yes." 

"But her eggs won't hatch. Because we don't have a rooster." It's just….tight. 

"That is in fact how this works, yes." Zuko deadpans. 

Why is Zuko so calm about this? This doesn’t feel like the kind of thing to be calm about. This feels like a very big thing.

"But I don't--we don't--do we want to let her have babies? That's a lot. Do we want more chickens? Are we ready for more chickens? I don't think I'm ready for more chickens. But will she just stay angry forever? How does this work? I should have spent more time researching, fuck! How did I get a DVM! The school should take it back, I'm not qualified for this, I'm getting chicken advice from an  _ internet chicken forum!" _ Oh. Apparently it's panic.

So, maybe Sokka isn't keeping it together as well as he thought. He might be having a little bit of a crisis about their pet chicken and her desire for babies and the fact that he doesn’t know as much about it as he thinks he should. He feels the restless energy under his skin, the familiar buzzing hornets in his chest screaming at him to move, pace,  _ do something  _ because he’s _ not enough. _

“Hey, hey, Sokka, look at me,” Zuko cuts through the mounting tide of Sokka’s distress. “It’s fine. She’s  _ fine.  _ We’re gonna be  _ fine _ . There’s even advice on here for how to stop the broodiness without giving her chicks. It’s a totally normal thing.”

“But I should know this! What kind of a chicken owner am I? What kind of  _ vet  _ am I? Jet would know this! Jet probably does know this! How have I gone 18 months without learning about this kind of thing?!” Sokka’s working up a good head of steam now.

“Is that what you think about me? That I’m a terrible chicken owner?” 

“No! Of course not!” Sokka flails his hands, exasperated that Zuko is trying to be reasonable. “But I  _ should  _ know, I’m a vet!”

“You’re a vet, not omnipotent! You think we’re the first chicken owners to not know everything? Clearly the good people on the,” Zuko pauses to glance back at the screen, “backyardchickens dot com forums would beg to differ! There’s 400,000 members on this fucking website!”

“Yes, but--” Sokka’s stuttering defense of his glaring inadequacies is cut short by Duckie, her patience for being held evidently worn thin. Zuko lifted his hands to gesticulate at Sokka, and she takes full advantage of the newfound freedom, emitting an unholy screech and flapping off his lap. She careens into the desk before hitting the ground, where she once again fluffs up and begins to waddle angrily towards the linen closet, maintaining a low growling twitter the entire way.

“Sokka. I love you, and don’t hold it against you that you don’t know this. We have the tools to figure it out. So come learn with me, please?” Zuko makes a come-hither gesture. 

Sokka wilts, leaning over the back of the chair to press his face into Zuko’s hair. “Fine. What does the internet say?”

\--

Further research gives them a course of action, involving a rabbit cage and a fan to help cool her down and discourage nesting behavior. There are other suggestions, but the idea of dunking Duckie in a tub of cold water and leaving her to air dry or making her sit on ice packs strikes both men as archaic and unnecessarily cruel. Zuko starts to look a bit green as they read through some of them, and Sokka can’t help but agree--just because it’s a chicken doesn’t mean it doesn’t deserve the same consideration as any other animal.

Sokka, feeling a bit more grounded now that they have an idea of what to do, formulates a plan.

“Okay! Are you ready, Zuko? We’re going to be the best broody hen breakers ever.”

Zuko shoots him a side eyed look while he gets up from the desk chair. “While I appreciate the enthusiasm, please don’t say the words ‘broody hen breaking’ again.”

“You’re the one who wanted me to embrace the chicken advice forums instead of panic about not being an all-knowing chicken owner-slash-vet.”

\--

Denizens of the chicken forums emphasize the importance of using a  _ bright, airy, and cool  _ cage to discourage broodiness. After a brief conference over Duckie’s current crate, which is well padded with a nice dark corner for her to roost in, Sokka and Zuko decide that a new, temporary dwelling will be required. Now the question of where to acquire said dwelling looms.

“ _ DuckGranny69  _ says Tractor Supply sells rabbit cages that work really well for stopping broodiness,” Zuko reports, skimming through a lengthy forum thread from his phone. 

Sokka emits something halfway between a laugh and a groan. “Ah, yes, the sage advice of  _ DuckGranny69. _ ”

“Hey, their post got 173 likes!” Zuko brandishes his phone at Sokka’s face. “Clearly it’s sound advice.” 

“Fine, fine, we’ll go to Tractor Supply. I know where the closest one is. Jet’s always complaining about their store brand of horse food.” 

“Don’t horses just eat hay?”

“Babe, how the hell would I know?”

Fifteen minutes and a brief stop for coffee later, both men stand outside the looming doors of an agricultural big box store. Zuko instinctively grasps Sokka's hand, twining their fingers together into a reassuring grip. 

Sokka studies the cluttered exterior, displaying items that range from dog kennels to wheelbarrows to mysteriously convoluted-looking lawnmowers. There’s a giant stack of pine shavings off to the side, and a red-vested employee is roaring around around the parking lot in a forklift.

“It’s like a redneck Walmart,” Zuko marvels.

“Walmart is redneck Walmart, Z,” Sokka replies. “This is…..something else entirely. Well, shall we go find Duckie’s new digs?”

They head for the doors, grabbing a cart on the way in. Sokka’s not sure what he expected from the front of the store--maybe tractor parts?--but he did not anticipate to be visually assaulted by several aisles of farm-themed home decor. 

“Welcome to Tractor Supply,” drawls a very disinterested employee from near the checkstand, who doesn’t bother to look up from restocking the candy display. Sokka’s busy drinking in the horrors of a particularly large metal rooster when Zuko jolts him in the direction of the giant “Pets” sign.

“Babe, babe, do you see the giant chicken? It’s like, three feet tall!”

“Yes, Sokka. I see the giant chicken.”

“And look, there’s dish towels with chickens on them!” Sokka releases Zuko’s hand to step closer to the decor aisle, picking up the aforementioned dish towels and eyeballing a chicken-shaped candle. He can feel the oncoming rush of endorphins that always accompanies a shopping trip, mixed with a vague sense of horror at the kitschiness of it all.

“Oh no, you don’t. Find rabbit cage first, then we can shop, okay? I won’t even judge you for buying the chicken towels.”

That’s a lie, and they both know it, but Sokka will take the win. Zuko is well-acquainted with Sokka’s shopping addiction by now. 

“Fair enough,” Sokka beams. “Lead the way, then!”

They meander through a few aisles of pet food, Sokka making caustic remarks the entire way. “Z, did you know this brand has been recalled  _ three times  _ in the last two years? I can’t believe they’re still allowed to sell the stuff!” Zuko just nods in acknowledgement. 

Okay, maybe Sokka can understand why Jet spends so much time complaining about horse food. 

They locate the rabbit items at the end of the pet bird food aisle, which Sokka insists is completely nonsensical, but a quelling look from Zuko halts any outward complaints.

_ Still doesn’t make any sense,  _ Sokka thinks to himself.  _ Rabbits and birds aren’t even remotely close! _

He’s interrupted from his disparaging assessment of the store’s aisle organization by a question from Zuko.

“The post says we need a wire mesh bottom, so we don’t want these plastic-bottomed kits….but do you think we need a 30-inch cage, or will she be okay in a 24-inch cage? I don’t want it to be too small, but she’s only one chicken.”

There are, admittedly, more rabbit cage options than Sokka expected.  _ Why are there five different rabbit cage types? _

“I think a 24-inch cage is fine,” Sokka concludes. “Besides, hopefully she won’t be in there for very long.”

Zuko nods in assent as he pries the selected cage off the shelf. Cage safely stowed in the cart, he turns to Sokka, leveling him with a calculating expression.

“Okay. We can explore now. But we are not coming home with anything  _ alive.” _

Sokka  _ beams.  _ “I can work with that!”

The next thirty minutes are a whirlwind of discovery.

Aside from an incident in the equine aisle involving a whip and some unidentifiable straps of leather--which Zuko halts by physically ramming Sokka with the shopping cart until he drops the offending items and vacates the aisle--the trip is fairly uneventful, only occasionally interspersed with Sokka’s squeals of delight.

By the time they make it to the checkout line, Sokka’s loaded the cart with two gallons of windshield wiper fluid, one gallon of transmission fluid, two tarps, a set of socket wrenches, duct tape in five different colors, a bulk bag of cat treats, a large bag of pine shavings because  _ holy shit, it’s so much cheaper than the pet store,  _ three massive bags of mealworms for Duckie, chicken dish towels, a chicken candle, and a decorative sign that declares  _ The rooster crows, but the hen delivers. _

(Zuko tries to sneak the sign out of the cart, but Sokka catches him mid-grab and fixes his boyfriend with the patented Sokka puppy dog eyes. Zuko relents and tosses the sign back in the cart before burying his face in his hands.)

The cashier who greeted them on their entrance now stands behind the counter, bored expression still firmly affixed. “Did you find everything okay today?” he asks, tone making it clear that he does not care.

“We did, and then some!” Sokka grins, unloading his loot from the cart as Zuko looks on in fond exasperation. “Did you know you can buy windshield wiper fluid by the gallon? I had no idea! This is life-changing!”

Zuko mutters, “You wouldn’t need so much of the stuff if you just went to a  _ damn car wash occasionally. _ ” 

Sokka ignores him.

Bored Cashier--peering at the name-tag pinned to his vest, Sokka notes that his name is Hahn--just looks blankly at Sokka while he begins to scan their items. 

“Are you interested in applying for a Tractor Supply credit card today? You can save--”

“No, thank you,” Sokka replies before Hahn can finish the sentence. Hahn looks mildly offended for having his spiel cut off, but oh well.

\--

Checkout complete, they face an unexpected challenge: fitting all of Sokka’s purchases into the trunk of the car.

“Well, the shavings can go in the back seat, I guess.” 

“You already have half a Costco’s worth of paper products that were supposed to be unloaded yesterday, a bag of prescription dog food even though  _ we don’t have a dog,  _ and two sets of scrubs in the back seat. I’m pretty sure you also mentioned a horse blanket. The fuck is this giant bag of shavings supposed to fit, Sokka?”

“I told you the dog food is for Appa, when I see Aang next! And Jet needed me to pick up the blanket from the horse laundry person.”

Zuko nods and gestures as if to say,  _ and the rest of it? _

“I’ll figure it out! We’ll put the rest in the trunk, and figure out the shavings….later.”

Sokka doesn’t think Zuko has much room to talk, considering his  _ literal swords  _ are chilling in the trunk, but he decides against pointing it out.

They do, in fact, get everything into the car, with only minimal difficulty. Zuko has to carry the dog food on his lap-- _ really, Sokka?  _ It was that or the shavings!  _ Fine. _ \-- but otherwise everything sort of fits. If the door requires a little bit more force than usual to close over the shavings bag, that’s Sokka’s business.

\--

“I’m not sure what I expected, but I didn’t really anticipate a rabbit cage requiring quite so much assembly.” 

Sokka stares dubiously at the unboxed cage and the  _ instruction manual  _ that accompanies it. Zuko, sitting across from him, fiddles with the cage itself.

“I think it just sort of….unfolds?” Zuko lifts one side and reaches for the other, inadvertently releasing his grip on the first edge, which promptly snaps back down onto his fingers. “Ow! Fuck!”

Sokka  _ doesn’t  _ laugh, but he does suppress an amused chuckle. Mostly. Zuko flips him off, and Sokka takes the opportunity to grab his hand and press kisses to the knuckles where the cage landed. Although Zuko rolls his eyes, the slight flush to his cheeks and soft smile give him away. Sokka winks and turns back to the instructions. 

“I think you have the right idea. These two sides,” he lifts the one that attacked Zuko, and nods towards the side Zuko was trying to grab, “fold up like this, and then the rest is hinged? I think. Let’s try it.” 

Zuko grabs the other side, brow furrowed in concentration, tongue peeking out between his teeth. Sokka finds himself caught in the intensity of Zuko’s focus, a swell of affection for the man in front of him lodging itself in his throat. Zuko looks up and cocks his eyebrow. 

“Well, are we going to put this shit together or are you going to keep ogling me?”

“Hey, you would  _ know  _ if I was ogling you!” Sokka retorts. “I was gazing lovingly. I’m allowed to do that.”   
  
Zuko chuckles, deep and throaty. “I love you, too. I will love you  _ more  _ when this cage is finished.”

Grumbling playfully, Sokka returns to the task at hand. 

Two pairs of hands make quick work of the cage. There’s a minor setback with the clips that are supposed to attach the freestanding sides to the body of the cage, because  _ these clips are not designed to work with actual human hands, what the fuck,  _ but their combined intellectual powers and some judiciously applied force finish the job.

Sokka does a brief victory dance, twirling his boyfriend in a circle around the cage. Zuko’s face is soft but his eyes sparkle, and their laughter echoes through the living room. Before they separate, Zuko plants a kiss on Sokka’s cheek. Druk sits on the edge of the couch, tail swishing slowly back and forth, ears turned back in faint displeasure. 

“Alright, love, let’s get this set up with a fan and go fetch our angry girl,” Sokka smiles. 

\-- 

After spending 15 minutes debating the ideal area for Duckie’s temporary relocation, they settle on a spot next to the west-facing sliding glass door to the backyard. Normally they try to avoid early morning light because Duckie rises with the sun. Since waking up to angry squawking at 5 A.M. gets terribly old, her normal crate is in a corner that stays fairly dim until a reasonable hour. However, the chicken forums suggest keeping broody hens in a bright area when trying to break the hormone cycle, so the men decide a few unpleasantly early mornings are a worthwhile sacrifice. 

Zuko’s hovering now, fretting a bit over the fan placement and waffling over the number of puppy pads to place under the cage. Sokka interrupts him after watching Zuko rearrange the food and water for the fourth time.

“Z, baby, look at me,” he murmurs. Zuko looks up, anxiety etched into the lines of his face. “It’s gonna be okay. This’ll only take a couple days, and she’ll be fine.”

Zuko sighs. “I know. I just don’t want her to hate us.” 

“Fundamentally impossible. We are unhateable.” The sheer hubris--and fundamental inaccuracy--of the statement wrenches a snort out of Zuko. Sokka preens a bit internally--almost two years in, he still gets a rush of endorphins when he makes Zuko laugh.

“Lies,” Zuko retorts, before sobering again. “I just….I’ll have to try to explain to her. Let’s go get her.”

“‘Course, baby, lead the way.” Sokka grabs his hand as they head towards Duckie’s linen closet lair.

\--

(They'd been dating for about four months when Sokka first witnessed what Zuko means when he says he has to explain to the pets.

"Now, I know you don't like this," he'd said, soft but stern, eye-level with the cat carrier. "And I don't blame you. The carrier and car are both scary. But I'm doing this so you can get a check up, okay? To make sure you're healthy. Plus, Sokka's going to take great care of you, and give you the best scratches and treats. We're doing it for you, even if it doesn't feel like it. It won't be too long. I just want you to know that I love you, Druk."

Sokka was bewildered, but didn't question it until that night, after Druk was home with a clean bill of health, and they'd both settled down on the couch after dinner. Zuko was loose and relaxed, leaning into Sokka's chest and watching something comforting and mindless on the TV.

"Hey, sweetheart?" Sokka had murmured, squeezing his arms gently around Zuko's waist.

"Hmmm?" Zuko tilted his good ear towards Sokka to hear better. 

"What...what was that with Druk this morning?"

Zuko stiffened, tension bleeding into his body. Sokka scrambled to soothe over his blunder.

"No, no, it's okay. I'm just curious. You don't have to tell me; I thought it was sweet. But it seemed really important to you, talking to him like that." Sokka hoped that was enough; he was still trying to navigate the intricacies of Zuko's insecurities.

Zuko sat in silence for a moment before sighing and curling in on himself a bit. 

"It's...it's silly. I just….growing up, there was always...so much. So much happening. And nobody--nobody ever really  _ explained.  _ If I wasn't getting yelled at or--or worse, I was being shunted into a corner or told to be quiet and I just. I wish someone had been there to explain. To tell me...what was happening. When things were scary or bad. Even though that's impossible, and it's stupid, but…" he trailed off.

"That's not stupid or silly at all, sweetheart," Sokka hummed, choking back his own feelings of rage and sadness and grief, thinking about what Zuko experienced as a child. It was so  _ unfair.  _ But Zuko didn't need Sokka to get angry on his behalf; he just needed Sokka to  _ be _ with him in the present and listen.

Another deep breath, and Zuko continued in a whisper. "I know they can't understand me, and that it's weird, and stupid. But I just…for me, I want them to know. That I'm never...never doing anything scary to hurt them. I just feel like if I explain it, if I tell them and put that energy out there, that maybe it will be...easier? For them. Less bad. I know they're animals, but I want to give them what I never had." Zuko stopped, nervously awaiting Sokka's response.

Sokka swallowed hard, trying to fight the growing wetness in his eyes. He lacked the words to express the emotions he was feeling, all of the warmth and grief and awe and love swirling together between his ribs, threatening to burst him at the seams. This man in front of him was too incredible for words, which were never Sokka's strong suit, but he tried. "Oh, baby, that's amazing. You're  _ amazing.  _ I'm so lucky. Oh my god. I love you." 

The words were out before Sokka could stop them; they’d been bouncing around his chest for a few weeks, but he’d wanted to be more careful, more precise with them. They’re out there now, though, and Sokka will stand by them, if Zuko will have him.

Zuko half turned to meet Sokka's eyes, bewilderment and something else on his face. "'M not amazing...I'm just me," he'd choked out. "Nothing special. Not like you."

_ That won't do,  _ Sokka thought.

"To me you are. To me you're precious, Zuko. To me you're amazing." Sokka needed Zuko to understand, to see himself how Sokka sees him, resilient and kind and brilliant and  _ so much more.  _

"I don't see it," he'd replied, turning around completely to curl into Sokka's chest, pressing the words into his neck. "But I love you, too."

"Give me time. Give me time to help you see." Sokka tried to ink understanding into Zuko's skin with his lips and teeth and tongue, words of adoration flowing like benedictions from his mouth.

Zuko didn't understand; not yet. But that night, Sokka decided that he'd gladly spend a lifetime proving it to him.)

\--

Duckie is exactly where they left her, nestled into the corner with her feathers fluffed and her head tucked behind a wing. 

Reluctantly, Zuko reaches down to disturb her. He only flinches slightly when she awakens from her slumber into full velociraptor mode, trilling angrily and pecking at him with vicious accuracy.

“Okay, maybe I feel less bad now,” Zuko mutters as he attempts to corral their offended bird-child in his arms. Sokka reaches over and uses his hands to gently push Duckie’s wings back against her body, which allows Zuko to wrap his arm around her to prevent further enraged wing flapping. 

“Alright you feathered menace,” Sokka leans down to look her in the eye. It always startles him when she seems to meet his gaze, disgruntlement radiating off her in waves. “It’s off to hormone jail for a little bit.” Zuko shoots him a scandalized look.

“Don’t call it that! That’s just rude!”

“Sorry, sorry, no more jail references, I promise.” 

Satisfied, Zuko walks out towards the living room and Duckie’s not-jail. Sokka trails behind, Druk winding between his legs, hoping to get in on the action.

When their motley family arrives at the cage, Zuko places Duckie inside and closes the door before kneeling down, Sokka standing just behind him. Duckie slowly walks around the cage, testing its limits. Her demeanor is unchanged--she’s walking low to the ground, feathers fluffed out, making menacing bawks and trills every few steps. She is  _ pissed. _

“Honey, this is for your own good,” Zuko begins. “I know your body is telling you to hatch babies, but we’re not set up for that, and honestly I don’t know if you’d be a good bird mom. This is going to be uncomfortable for awhile, but hopefully it won’t last very long! And then it’ll all be back to normal. We love you a lot, even if it doesn’t seem like it right now.”

Sokka’s  _ not  _ misty-eyed, alright? His boyfriend is just the most painfully earnest person on the planet, and he can’t believe how lucky he is, and it’s just a lot. He drops his hands to Zuko’s shoulders and presses a kiss to his hair.

Zuko stands and heaves a sigh, leaning back to gently press into Sokka’s chest as Sokka lets his arms fall to Zuko’s waist. “Well, I guess now we--are you  _ crying?”  _

“No!” Sokka denies, burying his head in Zuko’s shoulder. “I’m just allergic to how sweet you are.”

Sokka grins when Zuko snorts out a laugh in response. “You’re such a sap. It’s getting kinda late. Let’s grab something to eat before bed and go watch something stupid on TV, yeah?”

“Sounds perfect, baby.” 

When they go to bed, Duckie is sitting in a corner of her cage, glaring in disapproval.

\--

It takes three days before Duckie returns to normal, and another two before she starts laying again. It’s not a day too soon, because both men are  _ very  _ tired of waking up between 4:30 and 5:00 A.M. to chicken squawks. Even Druk is getting pissy about it, burrowing under the covers when Duckie begins her morning cacophony. 

Suki laughs for a solid three minutes when Sokka explains the reason for his mad dash out the door, but she also softens and tells him she’s glad to hear Duckie is okay.

\--

Sokka is thankful life is back to normal, and that their brief chicken scare was once again something harmless. He resolves to learn more about poultry behavior--maybe he’ll sign up for one of those CE courses Jet keeps sending him.

It’s the following Thursday, and their group is scattered across a few tables of June’s bar. Toph is regaling them with a tale of yet another egregious violation of lab safety protocols. Once she’s done, Jet turns to Sokka and Zuko, mischief glinting in his eyes.

“So Suki mentioned that you had a  _ chicken emergency  _ the other day. Everything okay with our darling Duckie?”

Sokka glares at Suki, who just shrugs and winks. He should have known that it wouldn’t end with her cackling at him in the break room.

Zuko tells the group about their broody hen misadventures, Sokka interjecting with relevant details like  _ I did not buy everything at the store, thank you very much  _ and  _ I reserve the right to cry when I want to because the love of my life is being adorable, don’t mock me, Katara.  _ Ty Lee and Jin coo throughout, while Katara gags at the soft expression Sokka’s making at Zuko. Aang, Suki, and Toph are distracted with some sort of silverware sword fight, and Jet sips his drink with his eyebrows in that weird snarky expression of his. Haru just looks tired--he’s been pulling long hours at work--but cheerful, as usual.

Jet leans back in his chair, using a hand on the back of Haru’s seat to balance. “So would you say you had….an  _ angry bird?”  _

The group groans in unison. “Jet, I adore you,” Haru sighs. “But that was atrocious.” 

“You lot just have no taste,” Jet sniffs. “Anyway, I think you should have let her hatch some eggs. We could have had a baby shower, the whole shebang. Really celebrated!”

Zuko chokes on his drink while Sokka rolls his eyes. “We would not have a chicken baby shower, you heathen. Besides, what the fuck would we do with multiple chickens? The neighbors would be  _ pissed.” _

Jet just shrugs and smiles. The night continues on, and Sokka doesn’t think much of it.

That is, until the next morning, when he wakes up to 150 notifications. Jet took it upon himself to start a baby shower group chat named “Zuko/Sokka Chicken Baby Shower!!1!” and sent it to the entire group, which appears to have latched on to the idea with tremendous glee. Someone started a pinterest board. There’s discussion of ordering a cake.

Sokka’s going to strangle that man.

**Author's Note:**

> If you've never seen a video of a broody chicken, I strongly suggest googling it. It is an experience!
> 
> Thanks so much for reading my weird, self-indulgent chicken AU. I hope it makes someone smile.


End file.
